The culinary world is full of rich flavours, sweet fragrances and vibrant colours. This far-reaching excitement of the senses livens up every aspect of our journey with food – some ingredients are central to certain cuisines, some are unlikely yet surprisingly tasty combinations and some foods are just a match made in heaven.
If you’re looking to broaden your flavour horizons, we’ve created a series of food boards highlighting some of our most beloved combinations of ingredients.
We can often count on sweet and savoury notes providing a beautiful marriage of flavour, so this month’s food board highlights one of our favourite combinations – the creamy savoury notes of goats’ cheese and the subtle sweetness of figs and honey.
So, think of sitting on a shaded veranda, looking over the Mediterranean Sea, with a vibrant feast laid out on the table and a host of different textures, colours and flavours to enjoy. Perfect!
Salad: For a light and fresh serving, toss up a colourful earthy salad of spinach, rocket and radicchio leaves. Throw in some dollops of goats’ cheese and quartered figs, then drizzle over a sweet honey dressing. For this dressing, try combining olive oil, balsamic vinegar, clear honey and wholegrain mustard. For added texture and crunch, walnuts are a tasty final addition.
Tart: Perfect for a spring lunch or summer picnic, try rustling up a tart. Simply fill a pastry tart base with a whisked mixture of egg yolks, cream and grated cheese. Add chunks of goats’ cheese and fig slices before baking until golden. Add a little drizzle of honey for that final hint of sweetness.
Baked: Baked figs make for a great starter. Trim off the stems of the figs and cut an ‘X’ shape into the top – make sure you cut them deep enough so you can spoon in the goats’ cheese then they’re ready for a quick blast in the oven. When the cheese has turned golden, they’re ready to serve with a generous lashing of honey.
Pizza: Sometimes a little gourmet decadence is required. For a luxurious pizza, make a quick dough, and liberally add fig quarters, balsamic onions, walnuts and goats’ cheese. Once it’s baked to perfection add a drizzle of honey and sprinkle on a handful of rocket.